Grand Metropolitan plc

1. Title of report: Grand Metropolitan plc and William Hill Organisation Ltd (MMC - Cm 776)

2. Date of report: 24 July 1989 Published: 23 August 1989

3. Orders: N/A

4. Date of original undertakings: Press release: 7 December 1989

5. Companies giving undertakings: Grand Metropolitan plc

6. Details of undertakings: Divestment undertakings

(i) Where:

(a) Grand Metropolitan owns two betting offices less than a quarter of a mile apart and immediately prior to the merger one of these two betting offices was operated by William Hill Organisation Ltd ('William Hill') and the other by Grand Metropolitan; and

(b) at least one of these betting offices is situated more than a quarter of a mile away from the nearest competing betting office;

then, within six months of becoming aware of such a situation, Grand Metropolitan will dispose of its interest in one of these betting offices to a person intending to continue to carry on the business of a betting office from those premises;

(ii) Such a disposal may not be to any person who operates a betting office situated less than a quarter of a mile from the office being disposed of, unless there is a further betting office operated by someone other than the acquirer less than a quarter of a mile from the acquirer's office;

(iii) Where, both betting offices are disposed of, the two disposals will not without the prior approval of the Director General, be to the same person;

(iv) Where, between the merger and the date of these undertakings, the conditions described in paragraph (i) above existed, then where Grand Metropolitan has disposed of a betting office concerned, it will not:

(a) acquire an interest in such an office if to do so would cause the conditions described in paragraph (i) to recur; or

(b) without the approval of the Director General, dispose of the second betting office concerned to the same purchaser if to do would place the purchaser in a situation analogous to that described in paragraph (i) above.

7. Date of amendments: N/A

8. SIC code: 92.71 (Betting offices)

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